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Chambers welcome budget but want freight rate issue addressed
New Delhi, Jan 31: While welcoming the interim railway budget, trade and industry bodies have drawn attention to the government to its long-pending demand of rationalising freight rates on the railways.
New Delhi, Jan 31: While welcoming the interim railway budget, trade and industry bodies have drawn attention to the government to its long-pending demand of rationalising freight rates on the railways.
President of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Anand Mahindra has said that the proposals outlined in the railway budget were user friendly and development oriented.
Mahindra complimented the railways for registering an impressive growth in freight traffic which is expected to cross 550 million tonnes. The six per cent plus growth was in tune with the current resurgence in the economy and has been the result of the pragmatic approach and user friendly measures adopted by the railways, he added.
Welcoming the decision of the Ministry of Railways for maintaining the status quo on the freight and passenger tariff this year too, Mahindra said that railways could have used this opportunity to reduce and rationalise the tariff to boost the freight traffic further.
The CII president said that the increase in the plan allocation by Rs 1000 crore in the revised estimates to Rs 13918 crore is a laudable step. This will help railways to make necessary resources available for several announced projects as well as modernise wagon fleet, he said.
''CII is also extremely happy to note that the working expense this year is likely to be less by Rs. 1490 crore and this certainly would help in bringing the operating ratio down to 93 per cent, one percentage point below the target,'' Mahindra said.
Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci)said that the last budget had made an attempt to address the issue of traffic diversion because of distorted structure and this exercise would be taken further in the full budget.
President of Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) Mahendra K Sanghi described the budget proposals as populist which missed opportunity for improving railway finances by removing the cross-subsidisation on account of high freight rates and low passenger fares.
He, however, welcomed the focus on customer service and safety and introduction of new trains and extensions, need for assessing the railway safety provisions and setting up of mega capital thermal power plant.
The Assocham chief hoped that in the full budget after the election, the government in office, will address the critical issues such as new measures to bring more revenues and optimal utilisation of surplus railway land .
Sanghi also questioned ability of railways to garner additional funds for modernisation of the rail network, improve services and safety and cautioned against excessive borrowing through the Indian Railway Finance Corporation.
PHDCCI president Ravi Wig said the railway budget has not done much to rise above the short-term focus in announcing new initiatives. Strategic measures to bypass the phase of historic railway decline and entry into a renewed growth phase are missing, he said.
Bureau Report
Mahindra complimented the railways for registering an impressive growth in freight traffic which is expected to cross 550 million tonnes. The six per cent plus growth was in tune with the current resurgence in the economy and has been the result of the pragmatic approach and user friendly measures adopted by the railways, he added.
Welcoming the decision of the Ministry of Railways for maintaining the status quo on the freight and passenger tariff this year too, Mahindra said that railways could have used this opportunity to reduce and rationalise the tariff to boost the freight traffic further.
The CII president said that the increase in the plan allocation by Rs 1000 crore in the revised estimates to Rs 13918 crore is a laudable step. This will help railways to make necessary resources available for several announced projects as well as modernise wagon fleet, he said.
''CII is also extremely happy to note that the working expense this year is likely to be less by Rs. 1490 crore and this certainly would help in bringing the operating ratio down to 93 per cent, one percentage point below the target,'' Mahindra said.
Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci)said that the last budget had made an attempt to address the issue of traffic diversion because of distorted structure and this exercise would be taken further in the full budget.
President of Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) Mahendra K Sanghi described the budget proposals as populist which missed opportunity for improving railway finances by removing the cross-subsidisation on account of high freight rates and low passenger fares.
He, however, welcomed the focus on customer service and safety and introduction of new trains and extensions, need for assessing the railway safety provisions and setting up of mega capital thermal power plant.
The Assocham chief hoped that in the full budget after the election, the government in office, will address the critical issues such as new measures to bring more revenues and optimal utilisation of surplus railway land .
Sanghi also questioned ability of railways to garner additional funds for modernisation of the rail network, improve services and safety and cautioned against excessive borrowing through the Indian Railway Finance Corporation.
PHDCCI president Ravi Wig said the railway budget has not done much to rise above the short-term focus in announcing new initiatives. Strategic measures to bypass the phase of historic railway decline and entry into a renewed growth phase are missing, he said.
Bureau Report